Peru is called the Empire of Hidden Treasures. Its people are of Spanish, African, Asian and European descent. This rich mix is one of its leading characteristics. Eighty percent of the people speak Spanish.
Peru is a naturally religious country (more than 90 percent are Roman Catholic) with a range of festivals and rituals that re flect both Catholic traditions and the mysticism of age-old pre-Hispanic cultures.
What to see
You will want to visit Lima, the capital city. It is cosmopolitan and sophisticated. Taste the flavour offered by its street-side cooks frying anticuchos or so picarones in syrup against a backdrop of colonial balconies, old houses and churches with secret tunnels.
But not to be missed is Machu Picchu, a magical city that UNESCO inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1983 and recently was voted as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World. This archaeological site was hidden for centuries until it came to light in the early 1900s. The citadel is a challenge to the imagination and to engineering, opening between the mountains that mark the beginning of the Andes and the end of the Amazon Basin. Also see Chan Chan, known as the largest city of clay in pre-Colombian America.
Travel tips
- Avoid recruiting services such as exchanging money from people at air terminals and public roads.
- Get a taxi price established before you get in. Taxis don’t have metres.
- Change your money in banks or exchange houses.
For more information, visit Peru.travel.
